Happy
by SouthernBelloftheball
Summary: Jemima just wants to be happy.    Read and Review! oneshot/songfic


**I don't own CATS or the song!**

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Jemima was seen as a loner by her Jellicle peers and thus, a weirdo by the ones that attended school with her. They found it weird that she preferred sitting alone at night looking at the moon to dancing with the other queens her age. At lunch she wouldn't sit with the other Jellicles, she would run off somewhere and eat alone.

The only person that spent any time with her was Mistoffelees. There was no romance between the two, only an odd friendship. She wouldn't seek him out during classes to sit with him and she wouldn't look for him when everyone was just lounging around in the junkyard. He was always the one that initiated any interaction. The other Jellicles her age thought that she was being rude by never being kind enough to look for him for a change.

But they didn't know just how Jemima felt. She was afraid to take the chance of talking to any of them because she was afraid they would reject her. She didn't sit with them at lunch because she was afraid they would reject her. She didn't dance with the other queens because she was afraid they would reject her. She sat by herself because no one ever tried to talk to her. She didn't seek out Mistoffelees because she was afraid that if she showed too much interest he would leave her. She was a broken queen and nobody seemed to notice or care. She just wanted to be happy. But she had no idea how she could let the other Jellicles know how she felt.

So when it was announced that they would have a contest for the best musical or dance act in two weeks she mentally rejoiced to herself. What better way to finally open up than through song? So that day when Mistoffelees went to find her during lunch she was the first to speak.

"I'm going to enter."

Mistoffelees stood shocked for a moment. Since when did Jemima talk first? He quickly collected himself, thinking of a reply. "Are you sure? I mean, this is a pretty big deal and you've never sung in front of anyone."

"I know. But I'm tired of the way they see me. And I'm going to do something about it," she said determinedly staring him right in the eye.

"Well, how are you going to do it?" He couldn't imagine the tiny queen going up on stage by herself. He could still hardly believe how much she was talking at the moment.

"That's where you come in…I was hoping you would be part of the band and maybe get a couple of other cats to help." She looked away while she said it, embarrassed to ask him such a big favor.

Mistoffelees thought about it for a moment, mulling over the idea of being part of her band or doing his own thing. He decided against doing his own thing. What could he do? "Sure! I'll help. And I'll try to get some other cats. Do you have anything ready yet?"

Jemima took a deep breath. "No, but I have an idea. Can I tell you what I need tomorrow? Or will you need to get the other cats as soon as possible?"

"Tomorrow is fine."

Jemima smiled. The first time Mistoffelees could ever think of her doing so. "Good, well I'll see you tomorrow morning."

She walked off leaving an amazed Mistoffelees.

The rest of the day anytime he saw Jemima she had a pencil and paper in hand and was scribbling away, a look of deep concentration on her face.

Jemima bounced into his den then next morning, happier than he had ever seen her.

"I've finished it. All of it. Down to the last note," she said excitedly.

"That's good. What will you need?" He peered curiously at the papers she held in her paws.

"I'll need a pianist—"

"I can do that."

"—a drummer, someone to do a synthesizer, and two back up vocalists."

"That should be easy enough."

"Oh, and Misto, I want to keep it as much of a secret as I can. I want to surprise everyone not involved in it."

Mistoffelees smiled at Jemima. He was so happy for her. He just hoped she was a good singer…

Mistoffelees picked who to have help carefully. He wanted people that would do it with only a little persuasion needed. And people that could keep a secret. So he asked Victoria, Electra, Coricopat, and Tantomile to meet him in a secluded area for lunch.

"What did you ask us here for, Mistoffelees?" Coricopat asked him.

"Well…you see…I need you all to do a favor for Jemima."

The group before him groaned. "Why do we have to help her? She never tries to do anything with us," Victoria stated in a matter of fact tone.

"Look, Jemima wants to sing in the competition," Mistoffelees said.

The others stared at him in disbelief, unable to speak.

"She really wants to 'come out,' so to speak. She has a whole song written and everything. All you have to do at this point is agree to help." He looked at each of them expectantly.

Tantomile caved first. "All right, I'll do it."

Mistoffelees clapped joyfully. "Oh, good!"

"I guess I will too," sighed Coricopat.

Victoria and Electra agreed soon after.

"Okay, Tantomile, you're doing the synthesizer. Coricopat, you're on drums. Victoria and Electra, you're back up vocals. And I'm on piano. Now, you're sure this won't interfere with your dance, Victoria?" Victoria was the only one out of the group doing something else.

"No, don't be silly. I already have a dance ready."

"Great! I'll tell Jemima as soon as I can."

Jemima was overjoyed and felt ready to faint at the happiness she felt. She thanked Mistoffelees incessantly and hugged him multiple times. He'd never seen her so jovial.

They practiced almost every day the first week; always finding the most secluded spots so no one else would hear.

The first time they heard her sing the song they almost cried at the sheer emotion. The lyrics were brilliant and couldn't have expressed her better. And her voice, her heavenly voice. No one could have thought she possessed a voice like it. They were floored by her pure talent.

The practices went off without a hitch. Everyone learned their parts the first day and every day after that was just to perfect the act. They managed to keep Jemima performing a secret.

The second week was really just tying up the loose ends and practicing. They had it perfected already. So perfected, that they had a couple of extra days left. They decided to work on another song Jemima had written. They figured that if this performance was successful they might want to perform again. There was no harm in getting ahead by having a song prepared. Again, they were floored by it. They asked Jemima where she could have possibly gotten the idea. She shrugged and said she saw something on her owner's TV that inspired it.

Over the two weeks they all grew closer and soon became a very good group of friends. They all realized just how much fun Jemima was and were sad that they had missed out on her all these years. But they had to keep their new found friendships a secret in front of the other Jellicles. Some cat would be smart enough to put the pieces together. They all went missing at the same time. It would be too easy for a cat to figure out that their friendships were due to them sneaking out and practicing for the contest.

Soon, before anyone knew it, the two weeks were up and it was performance night.

Jemima was set to go last and she had managed to have Jellylorum, who had the set list, keep her performance a secret.

Everyone was seated in front of the tire where a makeshift stage had been built by placing large planks of wood on top of it. Smaller pieces of wood had been placed underneath the extension to ensure it was supported. There was a three minute break between each act to prepare the stage for the next. Everyone twittered excitedly until the lights began to dim to the point that the only thing lit was the stage.

Victoria went first, performing her dance flawlessly. Plato clapped the loudest. Next were Pouncival and Tumblebrutus performing acrobatics that only they could do. Jemima clapped particularly loud for them. She had been harboring a secret crush for Tumblebrutus for quite some time. Bombalurina danced a very sexy dance, making each tom drool and causing Jemima to blush. Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer were the next to go, singing a song about their many capers. Tugger went right before Jemima. He sang a song all about himself. During the song he called Etcetera, Rumpleteazer, Victoria, Electra, Tantomile, Cassandra, and Bombalurina up and they acted as his fan club during the song, dancing around him. Jemima felt very upset at having been left out. He had called every queen her age and older, leaving out only the mated queens—except Cassandra—to go on stage. She couldn't bring herself to watch the entire performance. She slipped backstage for the remainder of his song. The applause for him was deafening and Jemima felt suddenly scared.

What if no one liked her song? She would be humiliated.

How could she beat a performance like that? How could she possibly beat Tugger? She realized that a majority would vote for Tugger, the rest would vote for one of the other acts, and she would get no votes. After a moment of thought she reminded herself that maybe, just _maybe_, she would get Grizabella's vote. Grizabella liked singing above any other activity and she was often regarded as the best singer in the tribe. If Jemima was as good as her friends had said she was then possibly, Grizabella would vote for her.

But one vote was still a dismal result.

She was brought out of her terrifying thoughts as Mistoffelees, Coricopat, Tantomile, Electra, and Victoria joined her.

"Are you ready?" Victoria asked.

Jemima tried to ignore the tight knots in her stomach. "I think so."

On stage they heard Jellylorum announce them. "For the last act, Jemima will be performing a song she composed!"

Whispers were heard from the crowd as they all shared their shock at the news. Jemima's stomach twisted into complicated knots and she felt like throwing up. She looked at her friends. "Let's do this," she said uneasily.

The group walked on stage. Mistoffelees took his seat at the piano, Coricopat sat at the drums, Tantomile stood at the synthesizer, Victoria and Electra stood at their microphones, and Jemima walked to her microphone at the very front of the stage. She looked down at her fellow Jellicles looking up at her and saw nothing but disbelief and shock evident on their faces. Some cats had even crossed their arms, haughty looks on their faces. They were almost positive Jemima would just embarrass herself.

Any scared or anxious thoughts were suddenly destroyed. Jemima felt better. She felt the need to prove to them that she was something. Tantomile began the first notes on the synthesizer. And Jemima sang.

_Someone once told me that you have to choose  
What you win or lose  
You can't have everything  
Don't you take chances  
You might feel the pain  
Don't you love in vain  
Cause love won't set you free  
I could stand by the side  
And watch this life pass me by  
So unhappy  
But safe as could be  
_

Mistoffelees had joined in with the piano at this point. And Coricopat started playing the drums and Victoria and Electra began singing back up when she sang the chorus.

_So what if it hurts me?  
So what if i break down?  
So what if this world just throws me off the edge  
My feet run out of ground  
I gotta find my place  
I wanna hear my sound  
Don't care about all the pain in front of me  
Cause I'm just trying to be happy, yeah  
Just wanna be happy, yeah  
_

The Jellicles in the audience had abandoned their haughty and shocked faces. Most just looked unconvinced at this point. They weren't sure she should win yet. Yes, they had to admit that the song was beautiful so far. Yes, she had proven that she could carry a tune. But, she hadn't hit any amazing notes; she hadn't blown Grizabella off of her pedestal as best singer.

Her band members smirked to themselves. They couldn't wait for her to hit that amazing high note. She would prove all of them wrong.

_Holding on tightly  
Just can't let it go  
Just trying to play my role  
Slowly disappear, ohh  
But all these days, they feel like they're the same  
Just different faces, different names  
Get me out of here  
I can't stand by the side, ohh no  
And watch this life pass me by, pass me by_

_So what if it hurts me?_  
_So what if I break down?_  
_So what if this world just throws me off the edge_  
_My feet run out of ground_  
_I gotta find my place_  
_I wanna hear my sound_  
_Don't care about all the pain in front of me_  
_Cause I'm just trying to be happy, ohh, happy, ohh_

_The first "happy" in the chorus was the highlight of the song. Jemima blew through who knows how many octaves. She had the pleasure of seeing the spellbound and utterly flabbergasted faces of the audience. They had not expected that. Not by a long shot. None of them had expected such a powerful voice to come from such a tiny, tiny queen._

_So any turns that I can't see,  
I'll count a stranger on this road  
But don't say victim  
Don't say anything_

_So what if it hurts me?_  
_So what if I break down?_  
_So what if this world just throws me off the edge_  
_My feet run out of ground_  
_I gotta find my place_  
_I wanna hear my sound_  
_Don't care about all the pain in front of me_

_I just wanna be happy_  
_Ohh, yeah, happy, ohh, happy_  
_I just wanna be, ohh_  
_I just wanna be happy_  
_Ohh, happy_

For a moment, no one moved. Then Grizabella stood, tears streaming down her face, and clapped like there was no tomorrow. Every head turned towards her.

It was like a ripple effect. The other cats began standing and clapping along with her.

Jemima ran to grab her friend's hands and pulled them to the front of the stage where they all bowed together before sitting back down in the audience.

Jemima was glad no one was praising her at the moment. She wanted to hear the results before they commented on her performance.

"Alright, now that the performances are over," Jellylorum began saying," please take a pencil and a piece of paper and write your choice for best act. And remember, you can't vote for yourself. Also, band members can vote for who they played for as long as they weren't listed as part of the act."

It took five minutes for Jellylorum to count all the votes. When she had finished she climbed up onto the stage and grabbed the microphone. "There is no third place," she paused for a moment. "Second place goes to Victoria, with one vote." Victoria gracefully walked on stage and gave Jellylorum a hug before standing next to her to await first place.

Jemima readied herself for the harmful blow that was to come. Tugger had won. She just knew it. Obviously everyone had voted for him except Jemima (who had voted for Victoria). Jemima understood that she had gotten a standing ovation but maybe she just wasn't good enough…

Jellylorum continued with the awards. "First place goes to…Jemima, with every other vote!"

Jemima gaped up at Jellylorum. She felt Mistoffelees, Coricopat, and Tantomile excitedly screaming in her ear as they joyfully shook her. She slowly stood and hurried onto the stage. She gave Jellylorum a giant hug and then turned to Victoria who gave her the biggest hug she'd ever given any cat.

While they were hugging Jemima heard someone take Jellylorum's microphone.

"Wait, I want to say something. Give me the microphone!"

Jemima let go of Victoria and turned to look at Grizabella. Grizabella smiled at her tearfully.

"Young queen, I've never seen a better performance from any cat. I know, it's shocking, as I have seen myself perform," she laughed at her joke, blissfully unaware of the other cats rolling their eyes. "But, I think it's safe to say that with one little word you have taken my spot as the best singer in the tribe." She smiled at Jemima and hugged her.

"But be like me. Don't let it go to your head. Everlasting Cat knows I didn't." Jellylorum gave Grizabella a look when she said that, causing Jemima to giggle.

"Yes, ma'am," she answered.

Much later, Jemima had finally gotten away from the throng of cats each wanting to have a conversation with her about how wonderful she was and what a talent she had. Grizabella had taken the longest. She felt the need to give her pointers and tips on how to write a song.

Mistoffelees, who had been standing near them, heard Grizabella give the tips. He had to ask himself if she hadn't just heard the song Jemima sang. Or if she hadn't heard Jellylorum say that she had composed it herself.

Jemima headed to her den, thoroughly tired. She almost reached it when a cat tapped her on the shoulder.

"Jemima?" A tom's voice. That was strange.

She faced the cat and was pleasantly surprised to see that it was Tumblebrutus. She put on her best smile.

"Hello, Tumblebrutus," she said shyly.

"You were really good," he replied just as shyly.

"Thank you. You and Pouncival were amazing. I can't do any of those things."

"Thanks. It took us a really long time to get it right. But you know Pouncival. He's nothing if not persistent," he laughed.

Jemima giggled. She waited for Tumblebrutus to say something else, but he didn't. She began looking around feeling _very_ awkward.

Tumblebrutus battled with himself mentally. He wanted to ask her but what if she said no? What if she didn't like him? She probably liked Pouncival. Everyone liked him because he was so much fun…But there was nothing wrong with trying. Tumblebrutus nodded to himself. The least he could do was try.

"Jemima?"

She looked up. "Yes?"

"I was wondering if you wanted to hang out tomorrow."

She smiled widely. "Of course I would."

"Good. So, I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Yeah. See you then."

Tumblebrutus waved giddily and ran off. Jemima blushed and continued on her way to her den.

This was a good night for her. She couldn't have asked for anything else.

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**I wrote this a while ago just for fun, but never published it. So today I thought what the heck! Why not?**


End file.
